“I’M sure he will be looking down on me on Saturday.”

While appearing at Wembley Stadium would be the pinnacle for any player or coach, Fraser Ablett could be forgiven for feeling an extra tinge of satisfaction.

After all, it was on the very same field that his father Gary won FA Cup Finals with both Liverpool and Everton.

He remains the only man to have won the famous cup for both teams and having made more than 100 appearances on both sides of Stanley Park, he is among a select few admired by red and blue alike.

Warrington Guardian:

Gary Ablett was the coach of Liverpool's reserve team when they played home games at Warrington Wolves' Halliwell Jones Stadium. Picture by Mike Boden

Liverpool’s footballing community united in grief at his untimely passing in 2012 aged just 46 after a battle with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

A four-year-old Fraser watched on as his Dad helped Everton beat Manchester United in the 1995 Wembley showpiece and pretty much 26 years to the day later, the Warrington Rylands assistant manager gets his own chance at glory.

“I never really imagined being able to carry on his legacy in this kind of way by going to Wembley but it’s something I’m honoured to do,” he said.

“I’m made up to do it. As a family, it’s a proud moment.

“I just about remember the 1995 final with Everton. I remember the scenes coming home when they had won it.

“I remember the semi-final when Dad set up a goal for Daniel Amokachi at Elland Road. They are fond memories for me.

“I’m sure he’ll be looking down on me while I’m stood out there on Saturday. Hopefully we can bring the Vase home and make him proud.”

His father’s legacy is clearly a lasting one, as demonstrated prior to last week’s semi final against Walsall Wood when Everton left a social media message declaring how proud Ablett would be of his son.

“We were here on Saturday morning getting ourselves ready for the semi-final. I didn’t even have my phone on me but it was Dave (McNabb, Blues manager) who spotted it,” Fraser said.

“He told me Everton had Tweeted me wishing us good luck and leaving a nice message about Dad. It was a lovely gesture.”

Having made the decision to step back from a potential playing career at a young age, Ablett junior set his heart on coaching.

When McNabb was named co-manager at Rylands in 2018, he was brought in as a coach before being made assistant manager a year later when McNabb took sole charge.

Together, they have formed a formidable management team to move the club up the leagues and as such, Blues have moved to pin them down on long-term deals until 2023.

Fraser Ablett on the touchline with Blues boss Dave McNabb. Picture by Mark Percy

Fraser Ablett on the touchline with Blues boss Dave McNabb. Picture by Mark Percy

Ablett was keen to highlight the influence McNabb has had on him during his time at Gorsey Lane.

“Since we started on this journey two-and-a-half years ago, there been good times and there’s been tough times but I don’t think we ever would have anticipated being stood on the touchline at Wembley together,” he said.

“It’s a massive honour for me.

“The stuff Dave does and the work he puts in, not just on the pitch but away from it, is second to none. I don’t think there’s a job he hasn’t done here since he’s been in!

“I’m relatively young in my coaching journey and it’s something I never would have dreamed of.

“It’s not just Wembley either – being a part of two successive promotions is something I’m massively proud of. It will live with me for a while.”

Given their now-confirmed elevation to the Northern Premier League from next year, this tilt at the FA Vase may well be Blues’ last.

An undoubted high point of a whirlwind journey but as Ablett affirms, the focus is on it not being all downhill from here.

“You’ve just got to look around at some of the players we have, at the coaching team and even around the ground,” he said.

“The place has grown massively since we’ve come here, but we don’t want to stop here.

“We’ve had promotion confirmed now and while all our focus is on Saturday, it will soon be on getting ourselves ready for the Northern Premier League.

“Wembley will be a culmination of what we have done to this point, but it’s certainly not the end. We want to keep going.”